Rug scrubbing machines with foaming devices



3,425,081 RUG SCRUBBING MACHINES WITH FOAMING DEVICES Filed March 4. 1966 Feb. 4, 1969 c, w s rr ET AL Sheet I 01 2 .m wm mm a S V d N .r| R WmQ/m.

.l T WW A Md Inn C WITNESS: ave/w JpeehzZ Feb. 4,1969 w. 5mm. ETAL 3,425,081

RUG vSCRUBBING MACHINES WITH FOAMING DEVICES rileduarch 4. 1966 Sheet 2 of 2 INVENTORS Charles W. Smith, BYOfld Willard A. Dix

United States Patent 7 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A foaming attachment for a rotary floor polisher having a chassis below which is positioned a single foam producing or generating device comprising a fiat plate portion of a bracket which is secured to the chassis and a pivotally mounted lower squeeze plate movable with respect to the top plate. A single sponge is located between the two plates and a tube supplies foaming liquid to the edges of the sponge. The sponge is also positioned between a pair of rotary brushes and alternately is squeezed and relaxed by cam means operatively carried by polishing brushes rotatably carried by the chassis.

Summary This invention relates to the art of scrubbing and shampooing carpets, rugs and other articles, and more particularly to the provision of means for generating foam and dispensing the same on a rug, carpet or other surface, and one of the primary objects of the present invention is to provide an improved device of this character.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved rug scrubbing machine in which a single foam generating or producing device supplies foaming liquid to two rotary scrubbing brushes.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved rug scrubbing machine in which a single foam generating or producing device is operated from a single rotary brush but at the same time supplies foaming liquid to two rotary scrubbing brushes.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved mg scrubbing machine in which at least a portion of a foam producing device associated therewith is hingedly supported.

With the above and other objects in view, as will hereinafter appear, the invention comprises the devices, combinations and arrangements of parts hereinafter set forth and illustrated in the accompanying drawings of a preferred embodiment of the invention, from which the several features of the invention and the advantages attained thereby will be readily understood by those skilled in the art.

Brief description of the drawings In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken sustantially on the center line of a foa mproducing rug scrubbing or shampooing machine embodying the present invention,

FIG. 2 is a reduced scale plan view taken on the line 2-2 of FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is a reduced scale plan view taken substantially on the line 3-3 of FIG. 1,

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view partly broken away showing certain parts of the rug scrubbing or shampooing machine shown in FIGS. 1 through 3,

FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 1 but showing a modified form of the invention,

FIG. -6 is a fragmentary cut away perspective view of a portion of the mechanism shown in FIG. 5, and

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary partly broken away view taken substantially on the line 77 of FIG. 5.

Description of the preferred embodiments Referring more specifically to the drawings, the invention has been illustrated in FIGS. 1 through 4 as comprising a scrubbing or shampooing machine 16 of the same general type as that shown in United States Patent No. 3,244,023 issued Dec. 21, 1965. The machine 16, in addition to having an unshown propelling handle and an unshown container for a detergent or other liquid, comprises a chassis 17 the upper surface of which supports an electric motor 18 having a depending shaft 19 carrying a pinion 21. The pinion 21 drives one gear of a double idler gear assembly 22-23 which in turn drives a gear 24 forming part of a train of gears 26, 27 and 28. Gears 26 and 28 are respectively mounted on the upper ends of and arranged to drive a pair of identical vertically disposed drive shafts 31-31, the lower ends of which are formed with flats 32-32 (FIG. 3) the purpose for which will presently appear. The shafts 31-31 carry a pair of identical rotary brushes 33-33 each having a hub 36 formed with a central opening designed to receive the slabbed shaft 31 and preferably provided with a pivotally mounted latch means 35 for easily connecting and disconnecting the hub 36 to and from the shaft 31. The hub 36 carries a brush block 38 having an external concentric cylindrical rim 41, an upper planer surface 37 and a lower planer surface 42 from which depend a plurality of bristles 43. Both planer surfaces 37 and 42 are perpendicular to the axis of the hub 36 and part of the upper surface 37 acts as a dwell 46 of a circular face-cam profile having a rise 47 and a return 49.

A foam producing or generating member is designated generally by the numeral 50 and this device includes a plurality of screws 51 which secure a flat plate portion 52 of a bracket 53 to the lower surface of the chassis 17. The bracket 53 is formed with front and rear depending apertured lugs 56 and 57 for pivotally mounting a pair of trunnions 58-58 (only one being shown) in full lines forming part of a squeeze plate 59, the plate 59 being substantially the same size and shape as the previously mentioned plate portion 52. Between the plate portion 52 and the plate 59 is positioned a sponge or other suitable member 61 capable of absorbing a detergent liquid and which when alternately squeezed and relaxed produces foam and deposits the same on the surface being scrubbed or shampooed.

A liquid supply tube having a main 71 and two branch conduits 72-72 conduct a detergent or other liquid from a container (not shown) into two parts of a side edge of the said sponge 61.

In operation, the electric motor 18, by means of the pinion 21 and gears 22, 23-, 24, 26, 27, 28 causes the pair of shafts 31-31 to rotate in opposite directions. A detergent or other liquid is fed to the side edges of the sponges 61-61 through branch conduits 72-72 and as the shafts 31-31 rotate the brushes 33-33, the cam portions 46, 47 and 49 successively engage opposite edges of the lower surface of the plates 59-59 thereby giving a rocking motion to the plate 59 as it turns on its trunnions 58-58 and thus alternately squeezing and relaxing portions of the sponge 61. This generates foam which is squeezed out of the edges of the sponge 61 so that it falls upon the carpet, rug or other surface being scrubbed or shampooed. Reference to the drawings shows that the two brush blocks 38-38 have, by means of the flats 32-32, been timed so that when the rise or return of one cam of one brush block 38 is engaging one portion of the lower face of the plate 59 the other portion of the lower face of the plate 59 will be engaging the dwell 46 of the other brush block 38. In other words the two sets of rises and falls are out of phase with one another.

FIGS. to 7 illustrate a rug scrubbing machining equipped with a modified form of foaming device which in many respects is similar to the device shown in FIGS. 1 through 4, and elements which are common to both forms of the device are designated by the same numerals, while elements which are only similar in both forms of the device or are new to the second device are designated in the second form by numerals greater than 100.

The device of FIGS. 5 to 7 differs from that of FIGS. 1 through 4 in that only one cam (instead of two) is used to operate the squeeze plate 159, and return motion of the squeeze plate 159 instead of being obtained by a second cam is obtained by a spring 174. More specifically, the device shown in FIGS. 5 to 7 comprises, in addition to elements designated by numerals less than 100, a left brush 133 (FIG. 5), the upper surface 137 of which is not equipped with a cam, a fiat plate 152 formed with two notches 154, lugs 156 and 157 each of which is formed with a hole 160, a squeeze plate 159 formed with two notches 162, two trunnions 158-158, a sponge 161 formed with two cut-outs 163 and two springs 174 each of which has a coiled portion 176 and two end portions 177 and 178, the coiled portions 176 of the springs being wound around the trunnions 158-158.

In operation the device shown in FIGS. 5 through 7 functions in much the same way as the device shown in FIGS. 1 through 4, the main difference being that only the brush 33 is provided with a cam 47-49 and the spring 174 biases the squeeze plate 159 in such a manner as to oppose the action of the cam 47-49. Thus when the cam 47 is not causing the plate 159 to squeeze one side of the sponge 161, the spring 174 functions to cause the plate 159 to squeeze the other side of the sponge 161.

Having thus described the nature of the invention, that which is claimed herein is:

1. A rug scrubbing and shampooing machine comprising a chassis, an electric motor carried by said chassis, a pair of brushes carried by said chassis and rotatably driven by said motor, and a single foam generating member including a plate rnem'ber pivotally supported from said chassis and positioned so as to produce foam for both of said brushes, and means associated with at least one of said brushes for operating said plate of said foam generating member.

2. A rug scrubbing and shampooing machine according to claim 1 wherein said foam generating member is located substantially centrally of the machine chassis above said two brushes.

3. A rug scrubbing and shampooing machine according to claim 1 wherein each of said brushes carries a cam means arranged alternately to operate said plate of said foam generating member.

4. A rug scrubbing and shampooing machine according to claim 1 wherein one of said brushes carries a cam arranged to operate said plate in one direction and spring means arranged to operate said plate in the reverse direction.

5. A rug scrubbing and shampooing machine comprising a chassis, an electric motor carried by said chassis, a pair of brushes carried by said chassis and rotatably driven by said motor, a fiat plate secured to the lower surface of said chassis, a pair of apertured lugs depending from said plate, a squeeze plate pivotally mounted on said pair of lugs, a sponge positioned between said two plates, means for supplying a liquid to said sponge, means carried by one of said brushes for pivotally moving said squeeze plate in one direction, and a second means for pivotally moving said squeeze plate in the reverse direction.

6. A rug scrubbing and shampooing machine according to claim 5 wherein said second means for pivotally moving said squeeze plate in a cam carried by the other of said brushes.

7. A rug scrubbing and shampooing machine according to claim 5 wherein said second means for pivotally moving said squeeze plate is a spring biasing said squeeze plate in a predetermined direction.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,212,117 10/ 1965 Ernstberger et al 15--50 3,258,803 7/1966 Wolter et a1. l550 3,274,632 9/1966 Franklin 1529 EDWARD L. ROBERTS, Primary Examiner. 

